Yesterday I decided to do a test round making my own paper. I’d bought a small deckle to begin with thinking it would be post card sized, and it was – on the outside! The actual papers turned out to be only 12 x 7½ cm. I also think I may not like the fine silk screen used, it takes forever to drain the water. So I’m going to have to make my own deckle after all I guess and have some mosquito netting I’ll try for that. Once I get some wood.
More or less nothing actually! Which feels really weird after being so obsessed with it for a while, but in fact it’s very natural. I can’t do all the things all the time but I need the occasional shift in focus. Doing just one thing seems like having to eat the same food 3 x 365, even if it’s your favourite.
But I haven’t grown tired of it, in fact it just started out that way, a piece of cloth I didn’t enjoy making and since it required a lot of focus and counting I can’t just get it done and be over with. And then your focus slips away even without headaches. Oh, and did I mention that it’s really skinny thread, the fabric is as thin as fine bed sheets. Continue reading “What’s happening with my weaving?”
Daft me didn’t even consider making this a blog post until the day after, so I won’t be showing you any pix from the actual shop of all the things I didn’t buy.
We have in DK a chain of shops that are a little nicer than your average dollar store with plastic and glitter doodads. They specialize in baskets, glassware, notebooks, well, lots of things, but their displays are just cosier with wooden crates and things arranged nicely. They want to look more like an old fashioned shop with candy in glass jars and brown paper bags. Continue reading “At the knick knack shop”
Sarah generously offered to send me all of her leftover craft paints, when I complained about the “good” acrylics being too sticky for books, so I’ve been testing them a bit to see how that works.
Welcome to the next installment in our nettle-along.
This is what I managed to harvest in July, and it’s time for the next batch. I saved some of the leaves instead of feeding them to the horses, because while I don’t have time for a separate study of how to use the stalks for paper making, I do want to try to make paper and thought, why not add the dry leaves to my mixed materials bin? I’m drying my stalks inside because of the wet weather, I don’t know it that’s really necessary, but I didn’t want them to mold. Continue reading “Nettle harvest”
